page_title: Robert M. T. Hunter
section_title: Legacy
hierarchical_section_title: Robert M. T. Hunter / Legacy
caption_attribution_description: English: The American people have entrusted the Congress with leading our nation. Let us lead by example by removing these images from display in the People’s House.
context_page_description: Robert Mercer Taliaferro Hunter was a Virginia lawyer, politician and plantation owner. He was a U.S. Representative, Speaker of the House, and U.S. Senator. During the American Civil War, Hunter became the Confederate States Secretary of State and then a Confederate Senator and critic of President Jefferson Davis. After the war, Hunter failed to win re-election to the U.S. Senate, but did serve as the Treasurer of Virginia before retiring to his farm. After fellow Democrat Grover Cleveland was elected President of the United States in 1884, Hunter became the customs collector for the port of Tappahannock until his death.
context_section_description: In 1942, a United States Liberty ship named the SS Robert M. T. Hunter was launched. She was scrapped in 1971.
  As a former Speaker of the House, his portrait had been on display in the US Capitol. The portrait was removed from public display in the Speaker's Lobby outside the House Chamber after an order issued by the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi on June 18, 2020.
caption: The removal of Hunter's portrait from Congress on July 18, 2020.
exif: {}